One of the most frequent questions I am asked is “how do I get published?” There is no quick and simple answer to that question, but there is a quick and simple option for many. That option is CrossBooks.
In 2009, LifeWay introduced a new innovative style of publishing with the launch of CrossBooks. It continues to be an excellent match of cost-effectiveness and quality publication for authors. They contribute monetarily to cover the cost of publishing, LifeWay maintains the theological and literary standards that every manuscript must meet for us to publish. This theological standard is what sets CrossBooks apart from other non-traditional publishing houses. Unlike similar programs available, every book published through CrossBooks is subject to a trained theological review before publication.
We are proud of the growth of CrossBooks over the past few years. Just a few weeks ago, we published our 1,000th title through CrossBooks and are looking forward to thousands more. In fact, CrossBooks will soon make a publishing dream come true for free for an aspiring author through their annual writing contest. CrossBooks and LifeWay are asking writers to send in their manuscript for this year’s CrossBooks Writing Contest and a opportunity to win a free publishing package.
If you’re interested, you can head to the CrossBooks website for more details and to enter.
Thom – I was wondering what route I should go if I’ve already been through self-publishing. I didn’t know about CrossBooks at the time and went with another self-publisher last year. However, I’d like to see about publishing with a more reputable publisher to increase readership. I actually sent you a copy of the book a few months ago at the suggestion of my seminary president. Thanks for any advice you can give.
Tom -
Thanks for the comments. I apologize if I did not give your book attention. I receive numbers of books each week, and I often do not get to most of them.
Successful book publishing is more of an art than a science. Most books that do well have one or two primary characteristics: they have a unique message that cannot be found otherwise in the marketplace; and they have an author who has a good platform. Notice that I said nothing about the publisher. Certainly a good publisher can help push a book initially, but most books depend on a unique message and the good platform of the author.
Commercial publishing is the more traditional approach to publishing a book. It has its advantages in that the publisher does most of the work on editing and getting the book ready for the market. Many publishers have extensive marketing plans for a book. The disadvantage of this approach is that only a very small percentage of proposed books get commercially published. Furthermore, if the author thinks that the marketing alone will make the book an instant hit, they are likely in for a disappointment. The reality is that the vast majority of commercially published books do not do well in the marketplace.
Self-publishing requires the author to pay for all publishing services. The advantages are the ease of getting published and typically higher profits for the author on each book sold. For example, Cross Books has the same services as a commercial publisher, but the author pays for those services up front.
Digital publishing (such as Kindle) is growing in popularity. The upfront investment is low, but you do not have a physical copy of the book when the book is published. Buyers can only buy them digitally.
I have commercially published 21 books, and I have self-published two books. Of my upcoming three books, one will be commercially published (with B&H); one will be self-published (with Cross Books); and one will be digitally published only.
I recommend Mike Hyatt’s book “Platform” to help authors understand how to build their publishing platform. The one issue of platform may be the consistently most important ingredient of selling a book successfully.
Good response Thom! I appreciate you explaining the differences.